Summer Lund Analysis Paper English 3830 Dec.

4, 2013

A Legacy of Learning In the current tech-savvy world, advertisements can reveal an abundance of information about an institution or company. These advertisements are otherwise known as propaganda. According to the Oxford English dictionary, propaganda is defined as, "To disseminate or advocate... to persuade or influence (a person)" (Propaganda). There are various types of advertisements which are used as propaganda, including commercials, architecture, brochures, and social media. Although propaganda is usually received as a connotatively negative term, not all advertising is bad. One method for investigating a company or institution is to analyze their advertisements. Such analysis can reveal interesting facts about the group which released the ad. Every choice a company makes when releasing an ad is calculated; advertisements are created in order to persuade a potential customer toward their product. In the case of Richard Hardy Memorial School, their product is an academically sound education. To explain the uniqueness of the situation, a brief history is necessary. Richard Hardy Memorial School was founded in 1926 and is located in Richard City, Tennessee. RHMS has built an ethos around its slogan, "A Legacy of Learning." RHMS is different from other schools in its county. It is somehow considered a semi-private school. According to a financial audit

report released by Johnson, Murphy, and Wright (CPAs), the school receives three individual government funding (revenues, expenditures, and the general fund), but students are also required to pay tuition. Contrary to the admittance process for public schools, there is an interview required for admittance to the school (students have been turned away). Richard Hardy has a dress code, but not a uniform. RHMS does not appear to have a philosophy of learning, and instead have a hodge-podge approach to instruction. Richard Hardys report card is not available on Tennessees education website (as many charter schools). However, the school has been open for eighty years, and the law allowing charter schools in Tennessee was passed less than ten years ago. In terms of curriculum, the school does not offer AP classes, nor does it have a football team (or any outstanding sports teams). RHMS has recently had some serious financial problems because of a defaulted federal loan. The school is definitely a unique environment. RHMS recently (within the last six years) overhauled the school's website in favor of a newer, fresher, look. However, it may not be as functional as the school's director was hoping. The website, http://www.richardhardy.org/, is directed towards current and future students, as well as the parents. The first positive aspects, and most noticeable, characteristic of the site is its color. It reflects the school colors (primarily green) while simultaneously projecting a calming feeling onto whoever is viewing the site. The calming feeling is created through the use of a specific template, one which displays a 'swooping, swooshing' design. Another important factor about this page is the use of outside images. The pictures on the home page (specifically on the rotating ticker) offer important information about upcoming events as well as answers to popularly asked questions. The picture ticker also serves as the focal point for the home page (because they contrast starkly with the white of the background page). Another positive aspect of the website is the variety of menu options which are available on the home

page; most of the pages are designed for new students and parents (like the about us page, the handbook, or the home page) while only small sections are applicable to current students/parents (like the calendar, login capabilities, or lunch menu). These menu options make the website really 'useable' to new viewers. The site also has an embedded connection to some of its other advertisements, including Facebook, Twitter, and Google+. In terms of design principles, the site is based off of a typical template which lists the menu options across the top. The information on the site is divided up into several smaller enclosed spaces with divisions created by color differentiation and border lines. The enclosures highlight important text by separating it from the other items on the page. While the site has many positive attributes, it is also flawed. For example, each teacher has his or her own personal page. Their page is a place where they can post weekly homework updates, classroom rules, personal information, and so forth. When exploring these pages, it quickly became evident that a large majority of them were still "under construction." This flaw is especially aggravating for someone who is looking for information during a time crunch. Another point of interest of the website is that the school refers to itself as a female. This is an odd self-label since the school is named after (and was founded by) a man. Also, when a new story link is selected, the top half the site doesn't change which is confusing for someone who is using the site (since it looks like nothing has changed). This can lead viewers to believe that the links are broken or not properly embedded. The final fatal flaw of this site is: it is not fully up to date. This flaw encompasses the point about the "under construction" pages. However, there are other ways to evidence this flaw. For example, there are old announcements still listed on the page. While this doesn't seem like it would be problematic, it does make a statement about the level of professionalism at which the site is maintained. Also, under the history section of the site,

several big dates (of expansion [buildings, class listings, and so forth]) are not included. This website has a lot of room for improvement. The school is projecting an ethos of its own legacy, created by its ability to produce professional, academically excellent student. However, after viewing such an unprofessional website, this legacy seems to be a bit of an oxymoron. RHMS's ethos is that it is academically advanced compared to other schools (due to its 'Legacy of Learning'). RHMS's website uses all of the aspects listed above to create its argument (that it achieves higher academic proficiency due to its excellent legacy). This site uses logos to argue that it is a better school than the other local choices (because of its semi-private status). The site boasts several testimonial quotes to help shape this logos argument (see picture below). The site (and school) projects its ethos argument through a pre-established credibility that the school has built up in the community over the years. The school was built around an idea that everyone deserves a high school education, not just an education, but a truly excellent one. This idea has permeated itself into the local community, as well as the county. RHMS uses both ethos and logos to argue that it has a faculty and staff that are truly dedicated to seeing their students learn and achieve (setting it further apart from local schools). This argument is communicated on the site through the design of the page as well as its content (each teacher has his or her own individual page). Each teacher must maintain their own page, therefore demonstrating their level of dedication towards keeping students informed at all times. For this particular site, the argument projected through the site's content is mainly communicated through quotes or buzz words. There is not any noticeable evidence to support the idea of an emotional appeal on the site. After thorough analysis of Richard Hardy's site, there is ample evidence to propose a theory of its functionality: the site is functional, but most definitely not operating at one hundred

percent. While the design aspects of the page are on-point for this kind of site, it is the functionality and content that is disappointing. The under construction pages as well as the basic functions of the homepage are frustrating and confusing to a new user. The self-chosen pronoun 'her' is questionable to a truly observative user. The out-of-date announcements and photos (there was one photo on the home page from 1998 or earlier) are irritating for a viewer who knows better. On the whole, this site achieves its basic purpose: to portray a school which will be an intriguing and engaging experience for potential future students and/or parents. However, for current or past students it represents a slightly jumbled, skewed view of a school which is not entirely intriguing or engaging. In sum, the page is functional towards its main audience and goal, but only runs at about eighty percent in the category of the level of professionalism which it is maintained.

About Us

Home page

Under construction

Administration/Mission

Works Cited Johnson, Murphy, and Wright. "Richard City-Debtford School General-Purpsoe School Funds." JMW, 30 June 2012. Web. 28 Nov. 2013. http://www.comptroller.tn.gov/repository/CA/2012/5421-2012-Richard%20City%20Deptford%2 0SSD-rpt-cpa145.pdf

"Propaganda" Oxford English Dictionary. Oxford University Press, 2013. Web. 26 Oct. 2013. <http://www.oed.com.proxy.lib.utc.edu/view/Entry/152606?rskey=Cq3DMq>.

RHMS Richard Hardy Memorial School, 2013. Web. 25 Oct. 2013. <http://www.richardhardy.org/>.